{"id":1028,"date":"2024-05-08T12:36:59","date_gmt":"2024-05-08T12:36:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/?p=1028"},"modified":"2024-05-10T21:19:19","modified_gmt":"2024-05-10T21:19:19","slug":"in-zoophites-les-lalanne-hybridize-beasts-and-botany-into-functional-sculptures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/2024\/05\/08\/in-zoophites-les-lalanne-hybridize-beasts-and-botany-into-functional-sculptures\/","title":{"rendered":"In \u2018Zoophites,\u2019 Les Lalanne Hybridize Beasts and Botany into Functional Sculptures"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"an<\/p>\n

‘Les Lalanne: Zoophites,’ Kasmin, New York. All photos by Charlie Rubin, courtesy of Kasmin, shared with permission<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Now obsolete, the term zoophytes<\/a> once referred to organisms that exhibited both animal and plant characteristics. It’s also an apt title for a poetic exhibition of sculptures blending beastly and botanical forms by the late Claude (1925-2019) and Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier Lalanne (1927-2008).<\/p>\n

On view at Kasmin<\/a> in New York, Zoophites<\/em> brings together dozens of surrealist works from the French artists, known together as Les Lalanne, that bridge the divide between kingdoms. Included are iconic pieces like Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier’s “Grand Chat polymorph,” a ten-foot cat with a tail fin and wings that open up to reveal a fully functional bar cart, and a similarly multi-purpose bull whose bronze belly flips open like a small desk. Having worked as a guard in the Egyptian and Assyrian galleries of the Louvre, the artist often referenced ancient mythology and hybridity in his figures.<\/p>\n

While Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier gravitated toward the animal, Claude was drawn to the plant world. Oversized ginkgo leaves line “Les Berces adoss\u00e9es,” an elegant bench with four fan-shaped seats. The pair lived together but tended to work separately, and their rare collaborations maintain both of their natural affinities. “Gorille consol\u00e9,” for example, features a seated primate by Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier that grasps branches by Claude.<\/p>\n

As its name suggests, that glass-top piece is made to hold objects, and some curators and critics struggled to classify the duo’s works because of such functionality. “It was difficult to be accepted in the art world,” Claude said<\/a>. “We used to have a lot of trouble because we made useful things and made them ourselves. This is automatically considered as so called \u2018decorative arts,\u2019 a lesser, secondary art.”<\/p>\n

Zoophites<\/em> borrows its title from a 1964 show in Paris that was the first the pair presented together and is on view through May 9. For more about Les Lalanne, visit Kasmin<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

‘Les Lalanne: Zoophites,’ Kasmin, New York. Photo by Charlie Rubin<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Claude Lalanne, “Les Berces adoss\u00e9es” (2015), bronze, 42 1\/8 x 96 1\/8 x 29 7\/8 inches. Image \u00a9 Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY \/ ADAGP, Paris, France<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier Lalanne, detail of “Bouquetin (grand)” (1999\/2016), bronze and black patina, 37 x 53 1\/8 x 11 7\/8 inches. Image \u00a9 Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY \/ ADAGP, Paris, France<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier Lalanne, “Gorille consol\u00e9” (2002\/2016), bronze and glass 33 7\/8 x 72 3\/5 x 19 5\/7 inches. Image \u00a9 Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY \/ ADAGP, Paris, France<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

‘Les Lalanne: Zoophites,’ Kasmin, New York. Photo by Charlie Rubin<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier Lalanne, “Oiseau de Peter branch\u00e9 (grand) (Mod\u00e8le de montage)” (2004), bronze, 40 1\/8 x 54 3\/4 x 44 1\/8 inches. Image \u00a9 Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY \/ ADAGP, Paris, France<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Claude & Francois-Xavier Lalanne, “Centaure (moyen)” (1995\/2008), gilt bronze, 48 3\/8 x 33 7\/8 x 13 inches. Image \u00a9 Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY \/ ADAGP, Paris, France<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Claude and Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier Lalanne in 1985. Phot by Jean-Philippe Lalanne, courtesy of Caroline Hamisky Lalanne and Kasmin<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member<\/a> today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article In ‘Zoophites,’ Les Lalanne Hybridize Beasts and Botany into Functional Sculptures<\/a> appeared first on Colossal<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

‘Les Lalanne: Zoophites,’ Kasmin, New York. All photos by Charlie Rubin, courtesy of Kasmin, shared with permission Now obsolete, the term zoophytes once referred to organisms that exhibited both animal and plant characteristics. It’s also an apt title for a poetic exhibition of sculptures blending beastly and botanical forms by the late Claude (1925-2019) and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1030,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[14],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1028"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1028"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1028\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1040,"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1028\/revisions\/1040"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1030"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1028"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1028"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/goeggit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1028"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}